The dealer quoted me $217.00 each (retail) for new front brake rotors. Why are they so freaking expensive? Even at "trade" prices, the rotors are $$$.

Yeah, the whole hub is cast into the brake rotor assembly as one unit, but $217.00? They should have the races/bearings/seals pressed in for that price.

If and when the time comes to get new front rotors, where do you go to get a reasonable price on these things? Aftermarket?

 

Myself and Trans87 Just bought a set of cross drilled slotted rotors off ebay for a good price a few moons ago.. Nigel beat me to the better deal haha.. The rotors are local So Ca..

 

Why would you buy rotors from the dealer?

Just get them from a parts store. Stay away from the Chinese stuff.

 

Yea I bought these off Ebay. Been on the car over a year and half now and not one problem yet. No cracking, warping, or glazing of any kind. Been more reliable than the car itself Paid around 70 something bucks for both.

 

Nigel,

Is there a noticeable difference in braking performance with those rotors? How do they compare to the 1LE upgrade or the HD C4 brakes?

Also, can you still buy those particular rotors? Just wondering.


madmax,

Well, the reason I went to the dealer was because I was checking on some other nickle and dime stuff. However, while I was there I decided to see how much GM front rotors would be. When the parts guy said $217 each...EACH...my jaw practically dropped to the floor.LOL!

 

Well thats a good reason, if you wanted to fall on the floor laughing while you were there. Some stuff... the dealer just way overcharges on. That'd be one of those things.

 

Stillen (Steve Millen Racing) sells very decent drilled rotors down on Airway Dr in Costa Mesa for about $85 each. I would highly recommend picking up a set of his metal matrix pads also. I run them on all my cars. talk about a beautiful pedal sweetspot for street brakes- they are fantastic. I put a set of Powerslots on the fronts and could not keep them from warping. Stillen's are much better quality.

His website lists them as S-10 truck fronts, they are the same. I think Mike P used to work there for a little bit??? Of hand, I can't remember the guys name I deal with, I'd have to look it up- but just call and any "car" rep (as opposed to "truck" rep) can help you.

Dean

 

A few years back I bought a pair of cross-drilled AutoSpecialty front rotors for $70 each. Kay Auto in Van Nuys quoted me like $74 each for GM factory replacements back at the same time. No complaints on AutoSpecialty.

Pep Boys can order you EBC rotors. I'm not sure how good they are, but on the suspension board I know some people are using them.

For my 1LE upgrade I bought a set of slotted rotors from Hawks Racing on eBay. They are local, Riverside I believe. I paid $149 for the 1LE fronts and $99 for the 10.5" rears. No complaints to date and I've been running them for several months now.

 

Yes I did work at Stillen for a number of months. As far as their cross-drilled rotors go, absolutely phenomenal! James, my wife, and I were on the transition ramp from the east bound 22 to the northbound 57 at about 80+ when this a$$hole in a white C230 pulls right in my path of travel. I shouted for everyone to brace for impact as there was no way in hell the mighty 10’ers were going to supply enough negative acceleration to avoid an all out catastrophe. So here we are flat out in the outside lane when an inbreed makes a decision that he likes my lane more even though there is an f-body bearing down on him with the suspension completely loaded and traveling at an extremely high rate of speed. My newly installed Stillen cross-drilled rotors and pads brought me within a couple of inches of this corncobs bumper. We all looked at each other and simultaneously shouted, “DAMN”

***Disclaimer***
Please remember to follow all rules and regulations as stated in the California Vehicle Code as failure to do so can/will result in incarceration and or suspension of your drivers license.

 

The law is the Law.. Follow your laws in each State, Country etc..

 

Time for the wading boots....

 

What was your wife, James, doing to you that made you drive so fast? Was it tougher for him with the shifter in the way?

 

100% true but you were doing more like 95 MPH...but it should say James and my wife and not read that I am his wife. We all know I'd be the man in that relationship anyways, making Mike my beotch...or..er wife.

 

Like any pure bred Mexican, mike always drives like he stole the car and the popo are gonna deport his @ss if he is slow enough for them to catch him.

 

Few possess the skill let alone the ******* to dance on the razors edge as I do. Bow down as you master has spoken.

 

A previous post here reminds me of a story I read about open wheel drivers at Daytona.
One, who was new to the track, asked a long time veteran if you could drive around the track at full throttle.
The veteran replied, "yes you can" and as he turned away quietly added "you will end up on the moon if you do."

 

I think the grip better than the old rotors. They also don't glaze over both the pads and the rotors. Although they still are the 10 inch rotors so they still heat up. The 1LE and HD C4 are far more superior than these rotors being that they have multi piston calipers and a much better diameter to dissipate heat. Still for the money these rotors in my opinion are better than the standard rotors if you are just getting new rotors, They look, feel, and perform better than the stockers did

This looks like the guy I bought my rotors from. I remember him being in Long Beach. Like I said I have had absolutely no problems with these rotors. There are no cracks anywhere on the rotors and they aren't warped or glazed over.

The rotors on Ebay

 

Thanks for the info everyone!

Nigel,

For some reason, I was thinking they were no longer available. Must be the residual effects of going to the local GM dealer too often. "Sorry, that part's been discontinued.....sorry, that part has also been discontinued." LOL!

Actually, I didn't realize I had that many choices for stock size rotors.


Dean,

How well would they compare to the drilled and slotted ones like Nigel has? About the same more or less?

On the street, would the Stillen rotors/metal matrix pads be almost as good as a factory 1LE setup? I'm kinda using the factory 1LE setup as a benchmark of sorts since I aleady have the factory 11.5" rear rotors with the aluminum 2-piston calipers.

 

Quality of iron is what you are looking for in a rotor. I have no idea the durability of the ones Nigel has or even what the manufacturer is. Stillen starts with very good quality rotors- most rotors on the market are coming out of China these days but there arre some good and some bad manufacturers there. It used to be fairly common knowledge years ago about VW's for instance that the good rotors were from Germany and the crap aftermarket ones were from Brazil. "Usually" if you are paying a higher price for rotors they are better quality, but drilled ones you never know like with a so called "reputatble sounding" company like Powerslot & Powerstop (they are crap).

I can assure you Stillens are good, I have them currently still on the front of the Camaro (Though they have been heavily stressed with track use and tuned a half dozen times over about a 6+ year period, I am very hard on brakes) they are now thin and are starting to warp on me due to being close to tolerances and lacking bulk material for heat disapation. I pulled the crappy Powerslots off and gave them away and put back on the older Stillens (Still within tolerances barely) and am buying time until I get my Wilwoods on the front (Waiting on another top secret frontend project before I install them).

As for comparison to 1LE brakes, I can deffinately tell you my car running Stillen rotors and pads ( MetalMatrix pads are the main thing you want!) are stopping MUCH faster than a perf package 1LE car in stock form. HOWEVER, You must remember that I had the complete 10.5 system fully aftermarket with a 1le prop valve, lines, new calipers pads and rotors. PLUS the fact my car is about min 300lbs lighter than most here especially on the nose and I am running tires and a suspension that will handle the braking forces I am giving it. I am sh*t canning the 10.5 system only because of heat and rattling of pads (Inherit in the design of the iron calipers). They NEVER faded on me with the final setup I had even on a road course- tires got greasy before I ever had any fade present. They just would not hold up to the high heat and would warp- On the street, I never warped them- you could not get them hot enough unless you were to drive around with the gas and brake on at the same time.

The best thing about stillen rotors combined with his pads are they are fully CAD designed and CNC drilled which the design really promotes initial bite of the brakes. I have Stillen rotors on the front of my truck and they were recently out of pads temporarly so I ran to autozone and put on a set of Performance friction pads- what a g()d damn joke those are- they are scary and I have to lay on the pedal before they start to work- even with the stillen drilled rotors, so again, you need the pads also for a matched brake system. I can not get Over the counter drilled brakes for the rear of my chevy (Lincoln (ford) rear disc, but SVO rear calipers- Currie 9" rear) so I run Stillen pads but no rotors. The rears get much hotter than the fronts do but no fade. Those Perf Friction pads fade bigtime.

 

 

Is there any chance of a Group Purchase of the Rotors and Pads. I'm up for a set anybody else. ??????

 

Well if nobodys interested in a group purchase, then how about a little help with an address and phone number for Stillen. Thanks in advance.

 

Lang, Even though I use their products, I have no immediate need for rotors on anything right now or anytime soon. Pads I can always use.

Here's their address and website.

Steve Millen Sportparts, Inc.
3176 Airway
Costa Mesa, CA 92626

Phone: 866-250-5542


http://www.stillen.com/default.asp

 

Thanks Dean .... That will do it .